Tuesday, February 27, 2024 ~ Jared Goudsmit

Happy Tuesday Folks! Today is going to be short & sweet. I was taking an extra propane tank to the garage, tripped over outdoor cushions, and fell ass over teakettle onto my cactus last night. What a pain in the toosch! [Sp?]

17. *Manga series also known as "Mach GoGoGo": SPEED RACER.
 

Oh, did I love this cartoon in the '70's.

29. *Captain Morgan product: SPICED RUM.
 

47. *Iced bun, e.g.: SWEET ROLL.

64. *Yuletide excursion: SLEIGH RIDE.

40. Ceiling beams, or a three-word hint for the answers to the starred clues: R AFTER S.
 
What you think? A nice breezy puzzle that keeps the reveal hidden 'til the end.

Across:
1. British pop singer Lewis: LEONA. The only pop singer I know is Huey but he's from CA.
 

6. Stuff in a trough: SLOP. Oink.

10. Sea blue: AQUA.

14. Winter X Games host city: ASPEN. #Snowboard

15. Word before or after man: CAVE. HG showed you a snap of my "Cave" last Sat.

16. Reynolds of "Boogie Nights": BURT. He was also in Smokey & the Bandit w/ Sally Field & and the incomparable Jackie Gleason.

 

 17. [See: Theme]

19. Latvia's capital: RIGA.

20. Condensed, for short: Abbr.: SYN. I'm not sure how this works but it filled.

21. Measuring stick: RULER. "Ruler" is a 15th century variation of "rule," which comes, via French, from Latin "regula," which meant a measuring stick, a diminutive derived from "regere," to straighten, lead, or guide." I use mine to make a straight line.

22. Nodded: DOZED. I'll #Nap when I'm done.

23. Trusty mount: STEED.

My Hero!

25. "Loki" voice actress Strong: TARA.

27. Team on a movie set: CREW.

29. [See: Theme]

34. __ Fables: AESOPS.

37. "Cornflake Girl" singer Tori: AMOS.

38. United: ONE.

39. Molecule in some vaccines: RNA.

40. [See: Theme]

42. Hullabaloo: DIN.

43. AOC, for one: DEM. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez(D) is a representative or NYC's 14th.

44. Bassoon cousin: OBOE.

45. MLB team with Mr. and Mrs. mascots: NY METS. New York's Mr. Met.

47. [See: Theme]

50. "Alita: Battle Angel" star Salazar: ROSA.

51. Having no loose ends?: TIED.

52. "To reiterate ... ": I SAID.

55. Malfunction, as a copier: JAM UP.

58. Guilty and not guilty: PLEAS.

60. Relieved (of): RID.

63. Suitable for cacti: ARID. I love my Gramp's cacti but this is a sore subject for me right now.

64. [See: Theme]

66. "You can't have it!": MINE.

67. Normandy city: CAEN.

68. Rainwater diverters: EAVES.

69. Cricket clubs: BATS.

70. Calligrapher's collection: INKS. Pens & nibs also fit.

71. Give an address: SPEAK.

Down:
1. Gal: LASS.

2. Glimpse: ESPY.

3. Ali Baba's magic words: OPEN SESAME.

4. Family tree word: NEE.

5. Actor Braugher: ANDRE.

6. Spills the tea, maybe: SCALDS. You can sue if it's too hot and SCALDS you.

7. Garter trim: LACE.

8. Paycheck fattener: OVERTIME. Time and a half helped pay the rent.

9. __ capita: PER.

10. Using one's passport, say: ABROAD. I need to renew mine; expired in Dec t did.

11. Pop __: QUIZ.

12. Hard-to-resist impulse: URGE.

13. Just slightly: ATAD.

18. Have regrets: RUE.

22. Black tie optional, say: DRESSY.

24. Only even prime number: TWO.

26. Oak nut: ACORN.

27. Swiped items: CARDS.

28. Extend, in a way: RENEW.

30. Dev of "Slumdog Millionaire": PATEL.

31. Beverly Hills shopping destination: RODEO DRIVE. You can't say RODEO like a Texan. You gotta Church-it-up hoity-toity like Targette.

32. Storage rentals: UNITS.

33. High-minded org.?: MENSA.

35. Expert advice: PROTIP.

36. Buffalo hockey pro: SABRE.

41. Meal regimen: FOOD PLAN. Your diet.

46. Med scan: MRI.

48. Technique-building piano pieces: ETUDES.

49. Supine protests: LIEI-NS.

53. __-AFTRA: SAG. The Nanny (Fran Drescher) is in charge. Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. I didn't know the AFTRA bit. Sounds like a razor.

54. Lenten symbol: ASHES.

55. Door part: JAMB.

56. Opera highlight: ARIA.

57. Money maker: MINT.

59. Chive kin: LEEK.

61. Lightbulb, metaphorically: IDEA.

62. Help __: DESK.

64. School subj.: SCI.

65. Jay-Z genre: RAP.

The Grid:
 

The TL;DR:
WOs: pens -> INKS
ESPs: LEONA
Fav: I kinda liked JAM UP xing with JAMB.

Cheers, -T

Wednesday, June 7, 2023 ~ Jared Goudsmit

What Nonsense!

Happy hump day folks. Today we have three words that are synonyms for "Oh, BALONEY" spread at both ends of each theme entry (in circles that were too lightly printed for me to notice).

Why is this nonsense, you ask? Well, 1) baloney is spelt wrong and 2) the bologna words are outside the bread! 😀

Let's first visit the gobbledygook:

17. Über-genius: ROCKET SCIENTIST. Not a brain surgeon nor a "rocket surgeon." A bunch of ROT.

33. National Historical Park in Boston that commemorates a 1775 battle: BUNKER HILL. "Don't fire until you see this whites of their eyes." Ah, BULL - that wasn't really said. //Note the bonus:  There's  a lot of BUNK in there.

40. Prominent feature of many a Jimi Hendrix song: GUITAR RIFF. A bunch of GUFF (not Jimi!).
 

Purple Haze

56. Classic grade-school lunch, and what's literally found in 17-, 33-, and 40-Across?: BALONEY SANDWICH. Classmates thought I was full of Bologna and my nickname was... well, you can put it together.

How I learned to spell BOLOGNA

Now, let's see what other hogwash we have today:

Across:
1. "Ray" Oscar winner Foxx: JAMIE. JAMIE played RAY Charles in the MOVIE (38a).
 

Ray Charles in a Different MOVIE

6. Beef or pork: MEAT.

10. Hon: BABE.

14. Sicily's country: ITALY. Also Bologna's county.

15. Make one's mark?: ETCH. Cute.

16. Skills barometer: EXAM.

17. [See: theme]

20. Pound pts.: OZS. 16 ounces are parts of a pound (which doesn't contain puppies).

21. __ Vegas Raiders: LAS. The Raiders (NFL team) left Oakland for Las Vegas 22 JAN 2020.

22. Puts on clothes: DRESSES.

23. Oily compound: LIPID. Natural oil & waxes insoluble in water.

25. Banh mi spread: MAYO. With a large Vietnamese population in Houston, we have great Banh mi all over town.

Recipie

26. Michael of "Alfie": CAINE. Don't think I've seen the MOVIE.

28. Distant: AFAR. Opposed to 19d - aNEAR (where the Blazing Saddles' sheriff was #AuthinticFrontierGibberish, er, Bologna).

30. New Deal pres.: FDR. Franklin Delano Roosevelt served as 32nd US president from 1933 to 1945.

33. [See: theme]

35. French father: PERE.

36. Clothesline alternative: DRYER.

37. In the vein of: ALA.

38. "Philadelphia" or "Chicago": MOVIE.

39. Stratford's river: AVON.  I think I should say something about a Bard upon there.

40. [See: theme]

42. Tender in Tokyo: YEN. Tender, cash, money.

43. Washed-out: PALE.

44. Used a prayer rug: KNELT.

45. Actress __ Rachel Wood: EVAN. Her IMDb.

47. Billionaire financier George: SOROS. Here thar be politics...

49. Where to watch Kings battle Senators: ICE RINK. NHL's Los Angeles Kings vs Ottawa Senators.

52. __ goo gai pan: MOO.

 Recipe

53. Prosecutors, for short: DAS. District Attorneys.

56. [See: theme]

59. "Supposing that's true ... ": IF SO.

60. Disney film featuring light cycles: TRON. A MOVIE and an old-school video game (which I filled with quarters).

1982 Trailer

61. The Scales of the Zodiac: LIBRA.
 

Our ancients had a heck of an imagination.

62. Come off as: SEEM.

63. Cab: TAXI.

64. And the following, in footnotes: ET SEQ. "What follows (used in page references). Eg: "see: vol2 p3 et seq" #Googled post solve.

Down:
1. "__ Dreams of Sushi": documentary about a Japanese chef: JIRO. I highly recommend it.

Trailer

2. Encyclopedic in range: A TO Z.

3. PC alternatives: MACS. Apple's Macintosh.

4. Sort: ILK.

5. Cosmetics item: EYELINER.

6. Argentine soccer superstar Lionel: MESSI.
 

Kinda looks like Ted Lasso's Roy Kent, no?

7. Space-saving abbr.: ETC. ETCetera.

8. Low-pH substance: ACID.

9. The "T" of BTU: THERMAL. British THERMAL Units or 1054.35 Joules.

10. Brandt of "Breaking Bad": BETSY.

11. Mid-2000s comedy tour featuring Ahmed Ahmed and Maz Jobrani: AXIS OF EVIL.

Trailer (w/ light #politics)

12. High-pH substance: BASE. Dumb me put in ACID first (and I was a lab-tech!).

13. CPR-performing team: EMTS. Emergency Medical Technicians.

18. Become pointed: TAPER.

19. Within a stone's throw: NEAR. Unless you can skip it on the lake AFAR.
 

Wait, there's professional stone skipping?

23. Compare: LIKEN.

24. Newsstand spread: DAILIES.

26. Learning __: CURVE.  Calculus III had many high ones.

27. "Who's next?": ANY ONE ELSE?  Not The Who's 1971 album?
 

Backstory behind the album cover

29. Unfizzy: FLAT. Or still ;-)

31. Get sidetracked: DRIFT.

32. Snorkeling locale: REEF.

33. Party time, casually: BDAY. Birthday abriv.

34. Heist loot: HAUL. I like this one.

35. Skin openings: PORES.

38. Mime played by Bill Irwin on "Elmo's World": MR NOODLE.
 

Elmo's World

40. Media giant that owns USA Today: GANNETT. I used to feel ashamed, sitting in my hotel room solving their doormat-DAILy crosswords, but Erik Agard has really up'd the game over there.

41. Ohio birthplace of LeBron James: AKRON.  He got game.
 

LeBron James - 6' 9"

43. Apt rhyme for "sprain": PAIN. Cute.

46. Race car sound: VROOM. Zoom, zoom, zoom.

48. Muscat citizen: OMANI. Muscat is Oman's port capitol.

49. Hieroglyphics bird: IBIS. This is interesting.

50. Bistro: CAFE.

51. Actress Sedgwick: KYRA.

53. "I claim that!": DIBS.

54. Land division: ACRE.

55. "Inside the NBA" analyst, to fans: SHAQ.
 

Shaq - 7'1" 325 pounds. 
//conversion to OZs is an exercise left to the reader.

57. Fenway team, briefly: SOX. The Bo[Red]-Sox. Not to be confused with the Chi[White]-Sox who play at Guaranteed Rate Field (nee: Comiskey Park).

58. Clever one: WIT.  No one has accused me of that.

Theme was "rubbish" and the fill solid. Thanks Jared (and Patti's team).

The Grid

WOs: acid -> BASE, papers(oops) -> DAILIES, area -> ACRE
ESPs: JIRO (couldn't recall his name), MESSI, BETSY, PERE, EVAN, KYRA, ET SEQ
Fav: HAUL was old-timey fun but TAXI made me think of one of the funniest sitcoms ever.

And, now, for Weird Al's

My Bologna

Cheers, -T
Coda: From what (little) research I did: Jared attended Tulane and has been constructing puzzles since then. He's currenly at St. Louis Aquarium entertaining. He also did a stint at the Magic House, St. Louis Children's Museum. His LinkedIn and a 2021 interview.

Tuesday, November 29, 2022 Jared Goudsmit

The Princess and the Pea.  Each theme answer is a two word phrase where each word begins with the letter "P".  Today's puzzle is theme-heavy.  There are 6 theme answers: 4 in the Across position and 2 in the Down position.

17-Across. Big name in crossword magazines: PENNY PRESS.

28-Across. Wet blanket: PARTY POOPER.

47-Across. Challenging yoga asana named for a showy bird: PEACOCK POSE.  Nope, can't manage this pose.

61-Across. Electricity facility: POWER PLANT.

3-Down. Noodles often served alla vodka: PENNE PASTA.  Yummers!

30-Down. Picnic dinnerware: PAPER PLATE.

Across:

1. Word before and after against: HOPE.  Against Hope and Hope Against.  Hope can also be a woman's name.  [Name adjacent.]

5. Bite: CHOMP.

10. Credit card option, familiarly: AMEX.

14. Above: OVER.

15. Sound transmission: AUDIO.

16. Rain gutter site: EAVE.

19. Wreak havoc on: RUIN.

20. Concave belly buttons: INNIES.

21. Dramatic declaration during an unveiling: ET VOILÀ.  Today's French lesson.

23. Cave-dwelling fish: EEL.

24. Yuletide songs: CAROLS.  Why Christmas songs are called Carols.  Carol is also a woman's name.  [Name adjacent.]

26. Egyptian cobra: ASP.  The snake that did in Cleopatra.

33. Ancestry.com sample: DNA.

34. "__ the front door!": SHUT.

35. Look daggers (at): GLARE.

36. Blu-ray __: DISC.

38. One-named singer whose four studio albums have numerical titles: ADELE.  Her given name is Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (b. May 5, 1988).  The four referenced studio albums are numbered 19, 21, 25, and 30.  The numbers refer to her age in which she started working on the album.  [Name # 1.]

41. Go in circles: SPIN.

42. Actress/model Kate: UPTON.  Kate Upton (née Katherine Elizabeth Upton; b. June 10, 1992) began  her modeling with Sports Illustrated in 2011 and was a cover model in 2012.  [Name # 2.]

44. First word for some babies: MAMA.

46. __ out a living: EKE.

50. Uncooked: RAW.  Some uncooked foods are delicious.

Sashimi

51. Shoelace tips: AGLETS.  I learned the name for the shoelace tips from doing the crossword puzzles.

52. Indy 500 sponsor: STP.

54. Digital currency: BITCOIN.

57. Pro at net working?: GOALIE.  Cute clue.

60. Empty hallway sound: ECHO.

64. Sci-fi author Stephenson: NEAL.  I don't generally read Science Fiction, so am not familiar with Neal Stephenson (né Neal Town Stephenson; b. October 31, 1959).  [Name # 3.]

65. Like the humans in "WALL-E": OBESE.

66. Director Preminger: OTTO.  Otto Preminger (né Otto Ludwig Preminger; Dec. 5, 1905 ~ Apr. 23, 1986) was born in Austria-Hungary.  He started his career in Austria before moving to the United States.    He was known for pushing the boundaries of censorship by dealing with themes that were taboo, such as drug addiction (The Man with the Golden Arm) and rape (Anatomy of a Murder).  He also directed the 1960 film Exodus.  [Name # 4.]

67. Oscar winner Catherine __-Jones: ZETA.  Catherine Zeta-Jones (b. Sept. 25, 1969) is married to  Michael Douglas (b. Sept. 25, 1944).  They share the same birthdate, albeit he is 25 years her senior.   [Name # 5.]

68. Nash of "The Rookie: Feds": NIECY.  Niece Nash (née Carol Denise Ensley; b. Feb. 23, 1970) also portrayed Deputy Raineesha Williams on the television sit-com Reno 911!  [Name # 6.]

69. Gas in an eye-catching sign: NEON.

Down:

1. Grand Canyon people: HOPI.

2. Brick __ pizza: OVEN.  Yummers!

4. Orange half of a "Sesame Street" duo: ERNIE.  [Name adjacent.]

5. Bottle tops: CAPS.

6. "Ben-__": HUR.  The novel Ben Hur, by Lew Wallace was first published in 1880.  It was adapted into a movie starring Charlton Heston in 1959.  It was an influential Christian novel when it was published and was a best seller until 1936 when Margaret Mitchell's novel Gone with the Wind was published.  [Name adjacent.]

7. Laudatory poem: ODE.  A crossword staple.

8. Great woe: MISERY.  Also the title of a novel by Stephen King.

9. Hospital recovery area, for short: POST-OP.

10. Some spray cans: AEROSOLS.

11. Haleakala National Park island: MAUI.  The park is named after a dormant volcano.

12. Profoundly bad: EVIL.

13. Warrior princess played by Lucy Lawless: XENA.  Xena: Warrior Princess was an adventure television show that ran from 1995 until 2001.  [Name # 7.]

18. Shrill cries: YELPS.

22. YouTube journal: VLOG.

24. "Dang it!": CRUD.  Really?

25. Basketball shot: ATTEMPT.  Why an attempt?

26. Make logical sense: ADD UP.

Cartoon logical sense.

27. Long-billed marsh bird: SNIPE.

29. "I see now!": AHA!

31. "Get Out" actress Alexander: ERIKA.  Get Out is a 2017 psychological horror film.  Erika Alexander  (née Erika Rose Alexander; b. Nov. 19, 1953) played a TSA detective in the film.  [Name # 8.]

32. Continue to subscribe: RENEW.

37. Pepsi rival: COCA~COLA.

39. Country between Thailand and Vietnam: LAOS.  Laos is landlocked.

40. Ambulance letters: EMS.  As in Emergency Medical Services.  Emergency motorcycles can be seen all over cities in Israel.  They are the first responders and can provide medical assistance until the ambulance arrives.

43. Canceled, at Cape Canaveral: NO GO.

45. Greek fable writer: AESOP.  You can find his fables here.  [Name # 9.]

48. Like some earrings and ties: CLIP-ON.  Are clip-on earrings even available anymore?

49. Obi-Wan __: KENOBI.  Alec Guinness (né Alec Guinness de Cuffe; Apr. 2, 1914 ~ Aug. 5, 2000) portrayed Obi-Wan Kenobi in some of the Star Wars movies.  [Name adjacent.]

53. Bird of prey's claw: TALON.

54. Mercedes-__: BENZ.  I was shopping a month or so ago and there was an older woman in the shop who was wearing a Janis Joplin tee shirt.  The clerk asked her if she was a Joplin fan.  The woman replied, "oh, yes, but I was her babysittter."  [Name adjacent.]

55. Frozen drink brand: ICEE.

56. Not this: THAT.

57. Lady __ tea: GREY.  This must be the phrase of the week.  This tea appeared in Sunday's puzzle.  I knew of Earl Grey Tea, but was not familiar with Lady Grey Tea.  The difference seems to be that citrus peels are an addition to the Lady Grey Tea. 

58. Keen about: INTO.

59. Prestigious British school: ETON.  Prince William (b. June 21, 1982) and Eddie Redmayne (b. Jan. 6, 1982) were classmates at Eaton.

62. Tiny: WEE.

63. Keyboard key for exiting full-screen mode: ESC.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה

Many thanks to Sumdaze for filling in on Tuesdays while I was in Israel.

At the Market in Jerusalem

At the Market in Jerusalem

Chagall Windows at Hadassah Hospital

Chagall Windows at Hadassah Hospital

Nothing beats an Israeli breakfast